Images
by Wally Boswell
Summary: Alex sends Lena a way to see herself through Kara's eyes, will she finally realize what she lost
1. Images

Lena Luthor sat comfortably at her desk, as she listened to her two lead research engineers explain that factors on their latest projects. She wasn't really listening, she had already read the specs and knew the lab history, the project had promise, the engineering was sound, but she had the meeting scheduled and didn't want to cancel it. Her mind just wasn't in the office right now, it was across town, in the offices of CatCo, where a certain blue-eyed blonde was currently working on her next story.

Her meeting ended on time, her notes were given, and the engineers had their orders, she walked them to the door, thanking them for their time like a good boss, and noticed a box on her Executive Assistants desk.

"Is that for me?" Lena asked, wondering why she would receive a project with the mail.

"Yes ma'am, but it is from a person on your do not allow list." The perky, almost too perky redhead answered with a smile.

Lena's heart skipped a beat, would Kara have sent her something. She took a deep breath. "Who?" she asked.

"Alexandra Danvers, ma'am." The redhead answered. Lena really needed to remember her name.

Lena frowned at that answer. Alex had never hesitated to protect Kara after what happened at the Pulitzer ceremony, but she had made it a point to check on Lena as well, even if it was just a quick text or a request for something non-Supergirl related. Even though in her head she wanted to hate the Danvers sisters for making a fool of her, her heart, the damned traitor, wouldn't let her. "I'll take that, it may be important." Lena snatched the package a little quicker than she meant too.

She turned on the heel of her boot and marched back into her office. She took the package to her desk and removed the small knife that Alex had given her for Christmas the year before, in case she needed something to protect herself, Alex had said. There was that damn picture, why didn't she just throw it away. Of course, she knew why it was Kara, how could she throw anything away that had those blue eyes in it. She would never tell anyone, but she kept a scrapbook of anything Kara related in the locked bottom drawer of her desk, their shared pictures, her bylines, cards for whatever holiday Kara had sent them for. Anyone who knew Lena Luthor of the five-thousand-dollar power suits would never believe she had gone to the craft store for three scrapbooks to collect things that reminded her of Kara Danvers.

She used her knife to cut the tape and remove the string Alex insisted on tying around the box. Then slowly she slid the box from the wrapping and folded it reverently and set it to the side. Then she slid the knife down the tape, slowly and at a slight angle so she wouldn't accidentally cut anything inside the box. She opened the lid to find six sketchbooks wrapped in tissue paper. On the top was a note from Alex, written in beautiful penmanship of the Danvers sister. They must have been taught how to write from birth because Lena's looked like chicken scratch and she wrote daily.

As she read the note, her breath caught.

_Dear Lena, _

_I know you feel betrayed and angry, we don't blame you. But she never lied to you about her feelings, every single one was true._

_Your friend regardless_

_Alex_

Each book was dated and initialed. She rubbed her long fingers over Kara's initials, a small smile coming to her dark red lips. She took a deep breath to steady her shaking hands and opened the first book. Her breathing stopped and her heart skipped a beat as she sat, staring at her own eyes, drawn in Kara's hand. It was her, seated at her desk, from their first meeting. Kara had captured the moment perfectly. The set of her jaw, the smirk on her face as she spoke to Clark, but Kara had captured the mirth in her eyes, how even though she was defensive, she was not hiding a thing. She sat and smiled as she remembered that day, how shy Kara was, how she never admitted to being a reporter, just a tagalong. How she admitted she was trying to get out from under a family member's shadow.

The next few pages were much the same, different images from the same day, a study of Lena's eyes, her nose, lips, how her hair fell, how her earrings hung. Kara was practicing her face, even in parts, and it seemed so intimate. Then she reached another full profile. It was Lena at the café, the day Alex canceled, and she made the mistake of challenging Kara's ability to eat appetizers. 'How could I have been so blind.' She thought to herself.

She continued to flip through the books, remembering each instance, each memory chipping at her walls and her anger. Even images that Kara drew from different perspectives, like when Lena showed her the synthesized kryptonite. You could see the tension in her shoulders, the flow of her hair, and the lines in her blouse. Kara knew her well enough to understand that even though she had created something that could harm her best friend, she was still carrying the weight of the world on her shoulders.

She finally reached the image she had been dreading more than any other. The last night they had seen each other. Once again, her friend didn't miss a thing. You could see the fear, the anger and yes even the hatred she felt that night when Kara came forward with her secret. The eyes said it all and Kara had mastered her eyes. She captured in that single image everything that Lena felt, including that one emotion that Lena couldn't seem to hide from Kara.

The last sketchbook was covered with a note from Alex.

_Lena,_

_If you made it through the other books, be prepared, this one is very personal, and Kara may kill me for it._

_Your friend regardless,_

_Alex_

Lena was frightened now, what could be so horrible in this book that Alex was that worried to share it with her. She paused in her viewing to walk over to the bar and pour herself a tumbler of bourbon. Normally she drank just two fingers, but today seemed a little more stressful than most, so she poured to four fingers and no ice and made her way back to her desk. With a small sip of liquid courage, she opened the book and the first image shocked her so much the glass landed on her pristine white carpet.

The image was of her, but not her. The eyes were there but the nose was slightly off, and the hair was curly, not like Kara had drawn her at all. She looked down at the corner, the image was dated just a few weeks ago. She flipped the page, and her eyes were there again, only it was the image from the Luthor Christmas card when she was five. The next page was an older woman, again with those eyes. Then all three on one page.

Lena was breathing short breaths, she turned the page, and there was a photograph, two women with her seated between them. She lifted the photo with shaking hands and turned it over. There, in Kara's writing was a small note.

_Lena, Katherine and Katie, Westmore Village, Ireland. 1997._

Her heart stopped, she turned the photo over and over in her hands, expecting it to simply disappear, for her heart to stop, for something to happen. It never did, Kara had done something she had never thought possible, she found her. Kara had found her mother.

The next few pages were covered with news clippings, including the announcement of Lena's birth, the death of her mother and something recent, a story of her Grandmother? She had family in Ireland, someone she hadn't seen since her mother's death. How was this possible? The last page contained Kara's handwriting, explaining what she had found, and how she had tracked down Lena's grandmother. The woman was currently living in a nursing home in Dublin having been diagnosed with Alzheimer's. Kara's had notes on an upcoming visit as well.

Lena picked up her phone and dialed Alex.

"Danvers," Alex answered.

"Alex? How long-how long has she been looking?" Lena asked through the tears.

"Lena? She started the day after the Pulitzer ceremony." Alex answered softly, "She has tried to call you several times, but she couldn't get through."

"She did this for me, even though?" Lena asked, struggling to get her emotions under control.

"Lena, she would do anything for you." Alex smiled from the other end of the phone. "She's pretty amazing."

"Super even, Alex." Lena smiled through her tears.

"She's going to Ireland in a few weeks Lee, you should talk to her," Alex said.

"Alex, there is something I should tell you." Lena swallowed hard the words stopping before she could say them.

"She loves you too Lee," Alex said, knowing the words would mean more coming from Kara's lips.

"Thank you, Alex, for everything." Lena smiled as she hung up.

Lena flipped through the books for another thirty minutes before she decided exactly what she wanted to do. She called up her contacts, and there at the top of the favorites was Kara's name, she hesitated over the screen, then sighing deeply she taps the contact and the number dialed.

"Lena?" Kara answers, the weariness and sadness obvious in her voice.

"Kara, I'm so sorry." The words spill from Lena's mouth as the tears started again, staining the cover of the first sketchbook.

"Lena, do you need me there, I'm coming," Kara yells, into the phone, as she panics at Lena's tears.

"Kara, darling, not right now, tonight, at my apartment, around eight, is that okay?" Lena whispers, trying to contain her panic and her tears.

"O-Okay." Kara stutters.

"Thank you, Kara," Lena whispers as she disconnects the call. She smiles at herself.

Lena locks down her computer and slides the sketchbooks into her briefcase, then heads for the elevator, looking at her confused executive assistant. "Cancel the rest of my meetings today and take the rest of the day off." She gets out before the door closes.

Lena's apartment, later that night…

Lena is standing at the door to her balcony waiting on Kara to arrive. At 8:05 she heard a soft knock at her front door. She backs up, heading towards the door, hoping Kara doesn't arrive while she is taking care of the front door. She opens the door, not checking the peephole first. Kara is standing there, her eyes puffy from crying, her eyes barely looking up as Lena answers the door. Lena stops breathing for just a moment, realizing that whatever comes next, she needs this moment, now, just as much as Kara. She pulls the unsuspecting woman into her arms and hugs her. Kara at first is stiff, unsure, scared. Slowly she lifts her arms around her best friend and pulls as tight as she can without hurting her Lena.

The hug ends too soon for both women, but Lena takes Kara's hand and leads her into the living room, where every square inch is covered in Kara's artwork, except for one book, the last one. Which was on the desk in her office and would be discussed after everything else tonight.

Kara is staring at the walls, fear in her eyes. Has she walked into a trap, is Lena angry? So many thoughts run through her mind. Then Lena asks, in a soft loving voice. "Is this how you see me, Kara?"

Kara's voice falters, and she nods, with her head hanging, in embarrassment, in fear, in shame for hurting her friend.

Lena's fingers touch Kara's chin, lifting her eyes to face her own. Green on Blue. Rivers pour from Kara's eyes, running down her cheeks and staining her shirt. Lena leans in and with butterfly kisses, she touches her lips to Kara's cheeks.

Kara's eyes widen, her breath becomes shaky, and her knees threaten to give out. But then Lena's ask a question that her mouth could never form. Her answer comes as Kara's cerulean eyes darken with a hunger Lena has never seen before. Lena leans in, moisten her lips as Kara licks hers. Then their lips meet and the whole world stops. Everything that she thought this would be, is so wrong, she expected strength and steel, but all she could feel was softness and vulnerability. She could taste Kara's vanilla lip balm, could feel her tongue probing licking across Kara lips, searching for a way in. What started as a simple want, was suddenly a need.

Lena pushed harder into the kiss and was rewarded with a moan from Kara. The kiss continued, as Lena's hand reached and pulled Kara's shirt up, touching her bare skin, rubbing one palm down Kara's tight stomach muscles.

Kara broke the kiss, and again Lena saw a fear.

"Kara?"

"Lena, I'm scared-I've never-no one-Lee." Then the tears started again.

As the words spilled out of Kara's mouth, Lena realized that her Kara, this beautiful, hopeful spirit had to spend every day hiding who and what she was and what she was capable of.

"Kara, I trust you, I know you care about me. I know you would never hurt me." Lena smiles shyly.

Lena then took Kara's hand and pulled her forward, leading her into the bedroom, watching as those beautiful blue eyes followed her every move…

Those eyes, the only eyes that have seen her, the real her, the lost little girl who just wants to make a difference in the world. The eyes that see her with love and friendship, that care for her and support her. Her heart starts to beat faster, and Kara steps forward. This time Kara is pulling her forward, softly pressing their lips together and kissing Lena as if their very lives depend upon it. The kiss continues on until she notices that Kara is swaying in time to some music that only she can hear. She looks up and smiles. Kara smiles back, hearing their two heartbeats merge in her ears, knowing at last, that they are together. Kara smiles even larger at Lena's unspoken question.

"I'm listening to the sound of our hearts Lee; I'm listening to a masterpiece."


	2. Irish Eyes and Teddy Bears

Lena Luthor opened her eyes slowly, looking for the beautiful blonde who had shared her bed last night. Instead of a pillow covered in blonde hair, she saw a shadow and looked up and saw Kara floating above the bed. 'Oh shit.' She thought to herself, breathing deeply to make sure she stayed calm. She slowly rolled over and picked her phone up off the bedtable. Unlocking it she immediately found the last text from Alex and sent a quick text.

Lena: 'Alex, Kara is floating.'

Alex: 'What are you talking about?'

Lena: 'She spent the night here and now she is floating.'

Alex: 'It's normally a sign that she is relaxed. Your heartbeat has that effect on her.'

Lena: 'It does?'

Alex: 'Is she in the living room?'

Lena: '…'

Alex: 'Lena?'

Lena: 'Not exactly Alex.'

Alex: 'She will wake up on her own Lena, and she will slowly drop to the bed. Have her text me when she wakes up please.'

Lena: 'Sorry Alex.'

Alex: 'Goodbye Lena.'

Lena rolled back over to find Kara looking at her with those beautiful blue eyes. Even with her hair a tangled mess and a little sleep still in her eyes, she was amazing to just look at.

"At least you have the decency to blush Lee." Kara smiled from her pillow.

"How can you look so amazing first thing in the morning," Lena asked smiling.

Kara blushed and smiled, crinkling her eyes and laughing. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine Kara, a little sore, nothing to worry about." Lena smiled and kissed Kara on the nose.

"Are-Are you sure?" Kara asked, shyly.

"I'm positive darling. Now, how about breakfast." Lena smiled as she rolled over and got out of bed, pulling the sheet with her. She turned at the door and stopped cold, the room was dark last night, so she didn't get the view she was currently enjoying. Kara was a goddess, come to earth. Lena's breath caught and her heart started beating faster.

"See something you like Lee?" Kara asked, grinning like a Cheshire cat.

"Breakfast later?" Lee grinned back, just as wickedly.

A few hours later, after Kara and Lena had taken a shower and eaten lunch at this point, Kara texted Alex to let her know everything was okay. Alex's response was a very terse, 'I don't want to know.' Kara and Lee had quite a laugh at that. As they started to gather up the drawings in her living room, Lena looked over at Kara and smiled. Kara turned her head and smiled back. "What is it, Lee?"

"There's another book Kara, one you've been working since-since the ceremony." Lena stuttered a bit, she wasn't sure Kara was ready to discuss this one.

"Alex sent you my research." Kara almost growled. Somewhere in National City, a cold chill ran down the back of the darker haired Danvers sister.

"She did, but can we talk about it?" Lena asked as she bit her bottom lip and her fingers fidgeted nervously.

"I haven't finished Lee, I am planning a trip to Ireland in two weeks to finish the research." Kara spilled out.

"Can I go too? Please, Kara, I want to get to know her." Lena was almost begging.

"Of course you can go, Lena, I've been trying to call you for weeks." Kara softly touched Lena's hand to reassure her that this was not a secret she was trying to hide.

Lena gripped that hand like a lifeline, smiling at her. "I know, Alex told me, I'm so sorry Kara."

"Lee, we are past that, at least I was assuming we are?" Kara looked questioningly at the dark-haired beauty.

"We are Kara-I'm sorry-I never thought I would find her again." Lee stuttered, almost whispering the last part.

"There's more research at my apartment, more pictures too." The blonde smiled. "Want me to go get it?"

"What about your other job?" Lena asked, not sure how to broach that particular subject.

Kara set her drawings down in a neat stack on the coffee table locked eyes with Lena and walked towards her, never lowering her cerulean orbs from Lena's emerald ones. "Lena, my name is Kara Zor-El, I am Supergirl and I am Kara Danvers, and if you aren't comfortable with that, maybe I should go?"

Lena held the stare, then lowered her eyes. When she looked back up, Kara was still there, watching her, waiting for an answer. "I'm ready to accept you Kara, all of you. I just don't know how to talk about Supergirl."

"How about just ask Lee, I have patrols to run, but the DEO is normally in my ear." She laughed as Lena's eyes got wide. "Not last night Lee, I promise, when I am with you, no earpiece, okay?"

Suddenly Kara's eyes changed, and her ears perked up. "Sorry Lee, emergency downtown. I'll be back as quickly as possible."

Lena stepped as quickly as possible to Kara's side. "Be careful." Then kissed her.

"Always." Kara smiled as she changed and flew out the window.

***Two Hours Later***

Lena: 'Alex, where is she?'

Alex: 'Oh my Rao, Lena she is fine, she needed a shower before she left, the Alien was disgusting, then she was stopping by her apartment. When did you become such a worry wort?'

Lena: 'Sorry Alex, it's the first time she's been on a mission, I'm just nervous.'

Alex: 'She's fine Lee, relax, take a breath, she'll be there soon okay.'

Lena was pacing the floor until 15 minutes later her Super finally landed on the balcony. Lena rushed to the door, flinging it open so quickly that it rattled on the slides. "What took so long? Are you okay? Did everything go okay? Alex said the alien was nasty. Do you need food?"

Kara was listening to Lena talk faster than she could fly. "Lena—Lena slow down." Finally, she gave up and pulled Lena forward and placed their lips together. Lena stopped talking and leaned into Kara to enjoy their touch. She moaned slightly, purring under Kara's touch. Then she pulled away.

"So-sorry. I was worried." Lena smiled.

"I'm fine Lee, the alien was really nasty and it took three showers to get the slime off." Kara smiled. "Sorry, next time I'll call as soon as the fight is over."

"Thank you, I'm sorry." Lena cast her eyes downward, ashamed of herself.

"I brought presents Lee." Kara lifted her chin, showing her the bag of goodies she had brought with her. "It's my research on your mom and grandmother."

"Give me?" Lena asked, reaching for the bag. "Give me and I'll order pizza and potstickers."

"Oh, food! Here you go, but I'll have you know I would have given it up for a kiss." Kara laughed.

"Brat," Lena said as Kara entered the condo, heading to the bathroom to change into sweats. When she entered the living room Lena had her research on the coffee table, everything organized just like Kara would have done it, another sign to her that Lena was who she was meant to be with.

"Kara this is amazing." Lena gushed. "How did you find all this information?"

"It was a matter of finding out where to start Lee," Kara explained. "I started looking into this after the ceremony, you were so upset with me, and I knew you would probably never forgive me, so I wanted to make it up to you."

"So what did you do, something illegal?" Lena asked.

"No, I researched, I looked into births in Ireland, then cross-referenced drowning deaths four years later. I narrowed down where and when and then I finally reached the conclusion that there were only three possible matches." Kara explained.

"So, one of those three was my mom?" Lena pleaded.

"No, I had to dig deeper." Kara cut in. A crinkle developed on Lena's forehead. She was absolutely lost.

Kara laughed and tapped Lena's forehead. "Crinkle!" Then she continued. "So I got really interested in unclaimed bodies and I found one, about the right age in the same village that I found a birth certificate for a certain green-eyed CEO."

Kara pulled out Lena's birth certificate and laid it down in front of her.

_Lena Keiran Cadigan_

Lena ran her fingers over her name, her real name. She knew she was Luthor by blood, but to see her mother's last name. "You see Lee, once I had a name, a real last name, it got easier. I started tracing information, I started looking at addresses and phone books. Then I got really lucky and found your mom's name on a Luthor Corp employee list in 1992."

Kara pulled out a very old employee badge and handed it over. Lena took the badge and pressed it to her heart, realizing this was only the second time she had seen a picture of her mother. She tried and failed to hold in the tears. Kara scooted closer, grabbing a throw off the back of the couch and wrapping around the two of them, allowing Lena to cuddle and to lean her head on Kara's shoulder. She kissed Lena's head. "You want me to go on?" Kara whispered softly into Lena's hair.

"P-Please." Lena whimpered, still holding the badge.

"From there it got much easier, tracking her through government-issued paperwork." Kara was in full research mode. "Computer databases make it easy. Then a few weeks ago, I got really lucky and found an address, paid for by Lionel. It seems he bought a small house in the village for your mom and you." She handed a picture of the small house to Lena, watching as she sat wide-eyed looking at the front of the house that she had spent the first four years of her life in.

"Kara, this is amazing, all this work." Lena was still crying, but all of this was so much.

"Well a week after I found the address, the DEO had a call for assistance in London, so I stopped on the way back and got these." She spilled an entire envelope of pictures, badly taken from her cell phone onto the table in front of Lena, every angle, close up, anything she could to comfort herself and her friend. "I got lucky that day, the house was on the market, and the neighbor allowed me in, said that the elderly woman who lived there had just recently moved and he let me walk around. That's where I found the picture of you, your grandmother and mother. He knew them both Lena. He knew you."

"He knew my mother?" Lena asked hopefully.

"He did, he is one of the reasons I am going back." Kara smiled. There was a knock at the door, and Kara got up to answer it, knowing it was food arriving. While she was gone Lena flipped through the pictures of the neighbors, the interior of the house, Kara had even taken a picture of the for sale sign, that one Lena set to the side, there would be more real estate added to her portfolio very soon. Kara came back carrying the food, and set it down on the side table, stepping into the kitchen to get plates and water for both of them. She came back and found Lena staring at the picture of her mom on the id card. "I could draw that for you Lee if you like."

Lena smiled. "Thank you, darling, but I think I am just going to keep this one in my wallet."

They plated their food and Kara continued to go through pictures and information, stopping occasionally to study certain pictures, like one Kara had found by accident, in the local papers online archive, of Lena and her grandmother at a street festival in the village. That one would find itself in a frame the next day, next to the first portrait Kara had drawn of Lena.

Kara finally reached the end of her research, she had found a lot, and now she was dreading what she had found last. "Lena, I think I found a link between your father and the reason you could never find your mom."

Lena sat up straight. "What do you mean Kara?"

"Remember I said I had to check unclaimed bodies?" She asked.

"Yes," Lena asked tensely.

Kara took a deep breath. "I called a detective friend of Lois's and asked him to look into a certain case for me." She paused, worried that she was going to anger Lena.

"Go on Kara." Lena had a feeling she knew where this was headed.

"He discovered that the coroner responsible for the identification and return of the bodies to the families had been taking bribes for some time. One of those happened in 1997." Kara swallowed hard. "I found some evidence that your father may have had something to do with the disappearance of her body."

Lena's heartrate rose and she was getting flush in her cheeks, two signs that she was angry. Suddenly a plate was flying across the room, shattering and sending pieces of food and china to the carpet. Kara cringed, thinking the anger was focused at her. Lena stood, throwing a glass of water at the far wall, causing Kara to sink even further into the couch. Lena marched into her bedroom, screaming in rage.

Kara got up off the couch and started to pick up the glass on the floor and clean up the food. Tears fell from her eyes that she had hurt Lena again, she could still hear Lena screaming in the bedroom. She continued to clean and put the food away, still listening to Lena, cry and scream. Finally, she started to settle down and Kara peeked into the bedroom to find her laying on the bed, exhausted and asleep. Kara quickly shot up to the roof, where she had hidden the last item for Lena, one she had slightly broken the law to get to.

She touched down softly on the balcony and unwrapped the repaired teddy bear she had found in the Luthor mansion. She padded softly into Lena's bedroom and set the bear into the crook of Lena's arm, watching as she pulled it into a hug. She watched Lena's face relaxed and realized she recognized the scent of the bear. She smiled sadly as she tucked the blanket around Lena and walked out to the living room.

Kara settled back on the couch and straightened her research, she wasn't leaving Lena alone tonight, and she was sure that tomorrow would bring a fight. Then she pulled out her sketchbook and started to draw. She sketched the house, working hard to get the numbers just right, then the bear, drawing the eyes just right and Lena's shock at finding out her father may have been responsible for her mother's disappearing from her life. As she drew the last one, she worried again that she may have broken her friendship with Lena. She knew she was in love with Lena Luthor, but she didn't know how to say it. Once again, she turned the paper in front of her and drew how she felt. She drew a perfect portrait of Lena Luthor, her features soft in laughter, with her natural smile, the one that made those emerald green eyes shine with both mischief and true happiness. In the bottom corner, she initialed her drawing as she always did, but instead of the date, she wrote a simple, I love you. Then she looked up at the clock, thankful that it was Saturday. Then she laid down on the couch and slowly fell asleep.

About an hour after Kara fell asleep, Lena started to wake up. She felt the blanket around her and realized she was holding something fuzzy. She opened her sleepy eyes and found herself looking at her mother's bear, her bear, the one she had brought to the Luthor Mansion the day she was adopted, the one Lillian had told her she was too old for, that she didn't need anymore. "Ms. Pizzly?" She rolled over to thank Kara and found her gone. It was then that it came back to her, how angry she had been. 'Oh God, Kara! She probably thinks I am mad at her.' She thought to herself. She got up and padded as softly as possible into the living room to find Kara on the couch asleep, the light was on in the kitchen and Kara's sketch pad was open on the table. She picked it up to set it to the side and saw the drawing Kara had done of her.

She then scooted onto the couch trying to push her Kryptonian over enough for her lay down. Kara woke up when she realized what Lena was doing. "Do you want me to go?" She asked softly.

"Of course not Kara, I wasn't angry with you, I'm sorry I did that to you, but I want you to stay," Lena reassured her softly.

"Are you sure?" Kara asked.

Lena answered her with a kiss, then curled up in the nook of her arm. "Thank you for bringing back Ms. Pizzly Kara. I haven't seen her in so long." Lena said as happy tears rolled down her cheeks. Then as she started to doze. "I love you too Kara."

Kara's eyes opened wide as she heard Lena's words, her heart swelled with joy, then she kissed the top of Lena's head as she fell back to sleep.

"I love you Lena Luthor."


	3. Seen Through Words

"An oil fire and an Alien? Are you okay?" Lena asked.

"I'm fine Lee, I'm going to swing by DEO headquarters and shower and then I'll come to the condo. Is that okay?"

"Of course, it's okay Kara, how about I order from that new Italian place around the corner, spaghetti and meatballs for you, triple order, and eggplant parmesan for me," Lena asked.

"Thanks, Lee, I'll be there in an hour, promise." Kara smiled into the phone.

Lena disconnected the phone and made a note on a private note-taking app she and Alex were sharing concerning Kara. 'Better communications gear.'

She ordered the food, to be delivered in 45 minutes and sat down with her tablet to get a little work done.

The food arrived about 40 minutes later and she set the table and got everything ready for when Kara got back. 15 minutes her Super appeared on the balcony. She walked over to open the door, but Kara was waving her away. Lena stepped to her coffee table and picked up her phone, so she could find out what was going on.

Lena: 'What's wrong?'

Kara, giggling at the situation: 'I smell horrible, I thought I got the smell out, but apparently not.'

Lena: 'So shower here.'

After the last text, Lena dashed into the bathroom and started the shower. When she returned, Kara was standing in her bra and panties, her suit thrown into a pile at the far end of the balcony. She pushed the door open "Kara you didn't have-oh my god, the smell."

Kara blushed and hung her head, "Sorry Lee, I can go back to headquarters."

"No, float to the bathroom and get in the shower darling." She said as Kara moved towards the bathroom, "Used the lavender soap and shampoo Kara."

25 minutes later, Lena heard the water turn off and headed to the bathroom. Kara was already dry and wearing her pajamas. "Better, Lee?" Kara asked smiling.

Lena sniffed, "Much better darling," she answered, kissing Kara and ordering her to the dining room. "You need to eat, you burned way too many calories today."

As they sat down, Kara noticed Lena pull out her phone and type something. "What ya doing Lee?"

"Your sister and I are sharing some notes, about you, how to help you in the field." Lena smiled, "We are going to need a better way for you to come and go, or eventually someone is going to want to know why Supergirl keeps coming and going from Lena Luthor's condo. You also need a high-calorie bar, something to keep your levels up when you are in the field."

Kara's mouth dropped open, Lena and Alex were working together to protect her. She realized exactly how much the woman across the table meant to her. Lena was having the same thought.

The looked-up at each and at the same time blurted out, "We need to talk."

Followed immediately by, "You first."

Kara and Lena started to speak again, but Lena held up her hand. She knew the two of them could keep this up all night. "We need to talk about us, Kara."

"I agree Lena." Kara smiled at how in sync they were. "After we eat, okay?"

Lena smiled and that was all the reassurance Kara needed. The two women settled into a comfortable silence as they ate. Lena's thoughts took her back to the night of the Pulitzer ceremony three months earlier.

She could remember the speech, word for word, as her best friend finally admitted her secret identity too late.

"I'm Supergirl." Kara sputtered. Lena's face was impassive, at least she thought it was. "I've always been Supergirl."

"I should have told you so long ago, I know that," Kara whispered as the tears started. "But I just kept making excuses because you've been hurt so many times and-I convinced myself that I was protecting you. A memory made her pause, but she recovered, "And then one day you were so angry with me…with Supergirl." Once again, she paused.

"But you still loved Kara." She pushed on, her eyes down and tears falling, "I just kept thinking, if I could be Kara—just Kara—that I could keep you as a friend." She took a breath, then another and kept pushing forward, "I was selfish and scared and I didn't want to lose you, so I kept pretending, and I never stopped. Every time I kept my secret from you, I wasn't protecting you, I was hurting you, just like everyone else, and I am so, so sorry."

Tears continued to flow down her cheeks, "I am so sorry." She paused, waiting for a response, "Please say something?" Her eyes were pleading, they were Kara's eyes, but all Lena could see was betrayal.

Lena finally spoke, she asked just one question, "Why Kara, why tonight?"

Without a hint of malice or hesitation, Kara answered, "Because you deserve to know the whole truth, Lena."

Lena was angry, she was hurt as she spat the next words at Kara, "I've known, I've known since the night Lex died, the night I shot him to protect my best friend. To protect someone who had been lying to me every day."

Kara's face said it all, she didn't have a clue that Lena knew before tonight, or for that matter that Lena had killed Lex. But at this moment in time, it didn't matter, she was angry, filled with betrayal, and in that anger, she said the words that would haunt her dreams and nightmares for the next three months. She walked up to Kara and looked her dead in the eyes and whispered, "I hate you, Kara Danvers."

Lena looks up with tears in her eyes, causing Kara to panic and rush to her side. "Lee?"

"Just a bad memory Kar. A really bad memory." Lena smiled as she wiped her eyes.

"Are we okay Lee?" Kara asked, biting her lower lip and twisting her fingers.

Lena touched Kara's hands, and the effect was immediate, as she calmed down, "We are fine Kar, we just need to talk, about us, about everything."

Kara nodded and brought her plate down the table so she and Lena could finish dinner beside one another. When they finished, Kara zipped around the kitchen and cleaned up, one advantage to her appetite, there were never leftovers.

Finally, the two women settled on the couch, a tumbler of scotch on the table for Lena and a small glass of wine for Kara.

This isn't really something Lena is ready for, but she knows in her heart they need to talk about how everything happened and why. Her little boxes have spilled out, and to be honest she doesn't want them back.

"So Lee, why me?" Kara asks shyly.

Lena looks at Kara curiously, like the answer is so obvious, but then she realizes, Kara is not the type of woman who worries over what people think of how she looks, she is shy, almost an introvert, which is funny considering she flies around National City in an attention-grabbing uniform. Lena giggled a bit at the image in her head, then turned serious as she answered Kara's question. "Darling, honestly, the very first thing that attracted me to you, was how you looked that day in my office when you and Clark came in for the interview. You were wearing that white outfit, the skirt, and top, with your pink cardigan. My eyes kept searching you out, even when I was talking to your cousin. And your eyes, oh my god, they are stunning."

Kara's face fell a bit, and Lena smirked at her. "Darling. Oh, Kara, that's what attracted me to you, but what kept me coming back was your belief in me, your faith that I was, no that I am a good person. No one has ever done that for me. Before you," Lena paused to take a breath. "Before you Kara, no one believed in me, no one thought I could make a difference, they just wrote me off as another Luthor. But not you, you never judged me by my last name, you never judged me by anything but my accomplishments. As beautiful as you are darling, who you are under all of this." She waved her hands at Kara, "that's why I fell in love with you."

Kara's breath caught, and she saw Lena draw in a breath as well. Then she saw the look that she hated seeing on that amazing face, apprehension, the self-doubt that she would never be accepted because she was just her last name. She blurted out, "It was your confidence Lee, and your ability to put Clark in his place. You are so sure of yourself, at least to everyone else. Then you did something I didn't expect, and you—you let me in. You let me see Lena, not Lena Luthor. You let me see behind your mask. And what I discovered was so much more than what you show the world. I got to see your smile, the one that causes your eyes to scrunch up. I got to hear your laugh, the one that sends goosebumps down my arms because I am so happy to hear it. I got to watch how excited you get when one of your projects performs perfectly, and I got to see how frustrated you get when one fails. You let me all the way in."

Tears formed in Lena's eyes as Kara spoke, she had held her mask in place for so long, and Kara saw everything, and didn't judge her. "You know, I don't think I ever told you how proud I was of you when I found out you won the Pulitzer. I was so pig-headed."

Kara snorted, then covered her mouth as she smiled, "Did Lena Luthor just say pig-headed?"

Lena giggled a little, "Yes, I guess you are rubbing off on me. I was—I am so proud of you Kara, not Supergirl, although, what you can do is amazing. As Kara though, what an incredible accomplishment."

Kara smiled, and Lena felt herself relax with a warmth she hadn't truly felt since the nights before she killed Lex. This woman in front of her had so much love to share and she had decided that Lena was the person she wanted to share it with. The problem was no one ever saw Kara anymore, everyone only saw Supergirl. "Kara, why did you become Supergirl?"

"I wasn't supposed to, but there was a problem with her plane, and I couldn't lose her, I had lost my whole world, and then Jeremiah and I couldn't lose Alex, I just couldn't." Kara words were tumbling out of her mouth, tears were forming in her eyes. "I was supposed to stay hidden, to keep my family—my adoptive family safe, but after I saved Alex's plane, I felt like I could do so much more, but sometimes all of this, being Supergirl, pretending to be something I'm not, it's too much. I have Eliza and she's a great mom, but she doesn't know everything that goes on, and I have Alex, but sometimes I feel like I have to be Supergirl for her too. Then I met you Lee, and you accepted me for who I am, and then you were gone, and I was so lost." The tears were flowing, and Kara was unable to continue. Lena slid down to the floor and moved closer to her. Just her presence seemed enough to relax Kara, but she placed her hand on Kara's to let her know that she was there. Kara looked up through her tears, and whispered, "Sometimes I don't want to be all these people, I—I just want to be me."

Lee's mouth dropped open, but no words would come out. She was coming to the realization that the reason Kara hadn't told her that she was Supergirl, was because around her, she could really be just Kara. At that moment any vestige of anger or betrayal Lena may have felt evaporated and she pulled Kara into a hug, one meant to let her know, that no matter what else happened between them, Lena would never, ever take Kara for granted again. The taller woman folded herself into Lena's arms, resting her head on Lena's chest and listened to the sweet sound of her friend's heartbeat. That sound, the sound she had missed so much for the last three months, the sound that could calm bad dreams, or cause her breath to hitch, or bring feelings up from the depths of her heart. "I love you, Lee." She whispered as she closed her eyes and felt the heart under her ear speed up just a bit, in response to her words. Then she smiled as her tears stopped flowing.

Kara sat up after a few minutes, "Thank you, Lee." She smiled nervously, she was the girl of steel and wasn't supposed to be a total wimp. Lena looked into those beautiful blue eyes and pulled Kara forward into a kiss. She heard Kara sigh as she pulled away.

"Kara, it's okay to cry, to be upset, to not hold it in," Lee spoke, then started to giggle, finally breaking into hysterical laughter.

"Lee?" Kara stared, uncertain of what was so funny. "Lena?"

"Oh-Oh, sorry darling, it's not you, I'm laughing at my own words." She paused long enough to get the laughter under control. "You realize I just told you not to box your emotions up. Me, Lena Luthor, telling someone to let their emotions show."

Kara bit her lip to keep from laughing, but it wasn't going to work. She snorted through her nose, which caused Lena to start laughing again. And then there were two, both of them laughing with each other.


End file.
